Fruitful
by kimmiesjoy
Summary: It's an answer that hangs in the air between them, only they might be asking the wrong question.


A/N: I've crossed over to the dark side! This is probably a two chapter doodar, happy Sunday peoples :)

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Soft light from the single lit lamp threw the room into a battle of object and shadow and Kate dropped gingerly to the bed with a long sigh. She was tired, more so than usual but it _had _ been a long day and she reached over into the night-stand for her book, hoping to curl up and relax before she fell asleep, when he came bounding into the room.

He froze in the doorway of the bedroom, the blur of midnight throwing a shaded cape out from his shoulders that crept away from him on the wooden floors and meandered off into his office. The bare line of his legs held her eyes and for a few seconds she let herself get lost in the solid form of him just standing there in the doorway before her eyes finally slid up to his face.

His mouth was open and no sound came from him, just the glazed expression of worry that immediately made her toss her book aside and crawl up onto her knees. Kate made her way across the bed until she was perched at the end, rising high, her arms extended for him and whatever it was that had caused his eyes to open, so very wide and fearful.

"Castle?" She called and her voice seemed to shock him from his frozen state, and he threw up his arms in horror, his mouth still wide before he strode across the room and dropped down beside her on the bed.

"Well Alexis is pregnant." Castle sighed, turning his wide eyes to Kate as he waved the little white stick in the air.

"What?" Kate barked, making herself jump. She grabbed for Castle, holding tight to his arm to steady herself as she peered over his shoulder. "Why do you think she's pregnant?" She fought to control the volume of her voice as she practically climbed him, grabbing his wrist to bring his hand closer to her face.

"It's a_ pregnancy_ test." Castle stated bluntly, as if she couldn't see that already, "I found it in her bathroom."

Kate snatched at his fingers, finally pulling the test from his grip to stare at it. "It's positive."

Castle sighed, "I know, apparently the _fruitarian _ is _fruitful_." Castle let out a rumbling growl under his breath, turning to Kate, "I'm gonna kill him." He said, as Kate shook the test in her hand and then rechecked the box, as if her movement would alter the outcome, "Where's your gun?"

"In the safe." But she didn't look up, still holding the test between two fingers - quite a way away from her cos ... ew - and she shook it again, scrunching up her face in almost as much horror as Castle's.

"I'm too young to be a grandfather." He moaned, dropping his head in his hands, only to realize what they had been holding only moments before. Castle jumped to his feet, running his hands down his pant legs as he went, "I've barely finished being a dad and now this ... this bee counter has gone and ..." He grimaced unable to say the words, "He and my baby have... have ... and now ..." Castle growled again, long and low and so menacing that Kate's head snapped up, finally registering his tone. "That little piece of - "

"Pi?"

"I'm gonna square the son of a - Oh my God!" He spun on his heels and turned back to the bed, his eyes wider and his face more panicked than when he had first entered the bedroom, "What if it has his hair?"

He hissed the words like a frightening curse, as if even uttering them was tempting the fate of the universe or karma or whatever the hell deity had deemed it necessary to screw with his head.

Still staring down at the test, Castle barely heard Kate when she mumbled, "Might look like Alexis".

"My baby with a baby." He yelled in Kate's direction, stalking back and forth in a very good impression of the Linus that had haunted her dreams, "What if it has a moustache?"

Letting out a startled laugh, Kate shook her head, rolled her eyes, and finally looked up, "It's a baby Castle."

He gesticulated wildly, his arms flailing, his fingers pointing as if she should know these things, know better than to imply he might have ever so slightly started to lose his ever loving mind. "Babies have been born with beards before now, and tails, and horns."

"It's not the devil child, Castle." She snorted.

"It could be, Kate." His eyes grew wider still and he dropped down before her on his knees, hissing the words with fear, "What if it has no soul?"

Kate took a deep breath and thumped her hand down, hard, on his shoulder, clutching the white of his shirt tight between her fingers to tug him closer, whispering quietly, "You'll still love it."

Their eyes held and he crawled nearer, inched his way into Kate's arms with his hands either side of her knees, fingers moving up her legs until he sat before her. Castle stared up at her sorrowfully, unable to keep the thought in his head from slipping out of his mouth. "Tiny horns?" He squeaked.

"Still love it." She mumbled again, fingers sweeping his shoulder, a soft smile playing over her lips that was completely lost on him.

"And red eyes." He muttered petulantly.

She smiled wider, stroked out across his back, leant forward into him until her hand was curving around his neck, "Castle, it could have three ears, purple spots and be born wearing an entire Kevin Ryan outfit, complete with Windsor knotted tie and sweater vest, and you would _still_ love it. In fact - " she challenged - even as pride flooded the words - her fingers dancing out across his chest to touch at his heart, "you would _dote_ on it."

He grunted, his bottom lip popping out and his too-blue eyes narrowing at her with a knowing look that told her she was getting through - even if he didn't _like_ hearing it.

"Spoil it rotten, wouldn't you, Castle." There was no question in her words as she pulled him closer, nuzzled his cheek and grinned when he huffed.

He pouted, ran his hands up her legs and squeezed her knees, "She's too young."

"She is." Kate agreed, smiling into his skin, "But _I'm_ not."

"What?"

"I think you need to concentrate on something else." Kate said quietly, catching his hand between her own and pulling it up and away from her knees, laying it flat over her stomach.

"Something else?" He gulped, his eyes dropping to where she had laid his hand, his mind catching up with the thunderous roar of his heartbeat.

"Yeah."

"Like what?" His eyes darted up to her face, found her own staring back, shinier than before. Her cheeks were pink with something indefinable, mysterious, something possibly magical that lurked just below the tips of their joined fingers.

She took a deep breath and let it out slowly, before she smiled, "Like the fact that that test may have been in her bathroom _today_ Castle, but Alexis hasn't been_ here_ for three weeks."


End file.
